


in(ter)twined

by Anonymous



Category: Vinland Saga (Manga)
Genre: Brother/Brother Incest, M/M, Past Rape/Non-con, Sibling Incest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-15
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:29:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23130973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Neither of them has anything to worry about, now.
Relationships: Atli/Presumable Canon Wife (Vinland Saga), Atli/Torgrim (Vinland Saga)
Kudos: 1
Collections: Anonymous





	in(ter)twined

**Author's Note:**

> Fits into the fix-it series. Similar to the one I posted a few days ago but deals more with the rape recovery headcanon so it's a bit darker.
> 
> @ vincestsaga on twitter for more brocontent 👍

Atli is his, first and foremost. That's the only thing he needs the woman to understand. She's Atli's, the kids are Atli's, the dingy little house is Atli's. And before all of that, he was Atli's and Atli was his. That's all she needs to remember.

He isn't Atli's in the way they belong to his brother, either. Torgrim's a grown man. Not something Atli owns and has a responsibility to keep safe. It's the kind of bond only men can share, with the closeness only family can know. He's older, and there are some things Atli needs from him because of that, but it's a give and take. The two of them are equals.

So it's not jealousy he feels. Jealous is what you feel about someone who stands a chance.

He has it worked out by now. When he can see Atli needs him, he gives her a quick word they'll need the house today, and she gets the kids occupied for the day and clears out herself for a few hours. And he takes his brother by the arm, after they've finished the work that can't possibly wait, and leads him back into the house to be taken care of.

She never seems surprised, when he grabs at her sleeve. Torgrim has to admit it's not hard to notice when Atli's wearing down. But he's the only one who can fix it.

They knew how to work, once; how to pace themselves over the weeks and months. Every boy learns that as he grows. It just slipped away at some point, over the years of uneven living. Days or weeks sitting around in a boat, then a couple hours fighting for your life, and then back to the boats again—that's a rhythm that seeps into your bones, and it's hard work forgetting it. Farm life is steady. It doesn't make your blood rush like war does. So Atli pushes himself, just a little too fast and too hard, and he keeps thinking and fussing when he should be sleeping soundly after a day's work. His body expecting a long rest to make up for hitting that high limit. And he gets up the next day and does the same amount of work. 

It's a few weeks apart, usually, but Torgrim doesn't keep track of it. He knows the signs without needing to. Stumbling, tools falling out of his brother's fingers. Talking too slow or too fast. Losing track of what he's saying. It wouldn't build up like this if they could sleep together. Atli always sleeps deeper knowing he's there. But grown men share houses and beds with their wives, not their big brothers. So it's just once every few weeks that Atli falls asleep beside him, now, and Torgrim doesn't throw away the chance to hold him by going to sleep himself.

Their old way of living made for some pretty great sex, what with all the excitement and pumping blood. Lots of ways to vanish together, too, with nearly a hundred men all wandering around doing their own thing. Not that the sex is bad, now. Just quieter. Partly out of necessity, partly because they're older. It used to be such a thrill just having each other, they could barely keep their mouths shut. Now they're used to it. It's been this way most of their lives.

Something happened to Atli's jaw, when he lost the teeth. It doesn't hurt to eat—he's sworn up and down he's telling the truth on that—but he doesn't like giving blowjobs much anymore. Torgrim thinks he soaks his bread crusts more than he used to before he finishes his food, but that could be down to age. And he doesn't care about the blowjobs. His brother always loved giving them, even back when he was still teaching himself how, and Torgrim's had so many in his life he'll still be paying Atli back when they're sixty. He takes care of that stuff now, on the days Atli's too sore to be getting pushed around.

Atli's fingers curl into his hair when he does that, and Torgrim can feel the teardrops on his head when they start to fall. Not many, but enough that he has to give his brother's mustache a gentle tweak when he's taking him into his arms. Atli's too old to need reminding like this. It's not his fault, really. Something got unstuck inside when they were apart. Torgrim just has to tease him a little bit, to keep him from falling apart.

He doesn't ask anymore what it was that happened to his brother, that last time they were apart. Atli won't answer, and he has a good enough idea by now, anyway. Torgrim keeps track of the joints that bother him too much for his age, and the spots he doesn't like to be grabbed in bed, and the way he stiffens when his hair's pulled. Atli won't speak up about any of it, but Torgrim keeps his mouth shut about that, too, instead of telling him _You're driving your big brother out of his mind._ He knows every way Atli's supposed to move. So he holds him carefully now instead of grabbing and tugging, kisses his hair and the back of his neck, and does things right, so Atli knows just where he is and who he's with.

It doesn't matter how long it takes Atli to forget all the hard stuff. It'll happen eventually, with the proper care. Nothing that happened to him has anything to do with his life now. And nothing else is going to happen to him, because they're not going to be apart again. He'll forget, and it won't hurt him anymore. He won't get so tired then, but Torgrim'll take care of him anyway.

She washes the blankets in the mornings, same as the other laundry. There's always a load ready. Torgrim doesn't strip the bed when he's finally satisfied that Atli's out. The whole point's for Atli to get some real sleep. And he doesn't do house chores, either. He goes back out and finishes up what man's work he can get done. His brother sleeps through to next morning, and doesn't look at the woman as she's stripping the blankets off. She and Torgrim probably talk to each other more about these days, at this point.

She does the blankets, and feeds them, and doesn't pester his brother about what happens to him in bed. So it's not jealousy that Torgrim feels. He doesn't ask if Atli says his name in bed. No point being cruel. He's certainly never had to worry it might happen the other way round. They've had others, both of them, and he's always, always been the only name on his brother's lips when they're back together. How could it be any other way, when his was the first name Atli ever learned?

Atli does say _honey_ sometimes, when he's nearly asleep, and it sets Torgrim's teeth on edge to hear it, but that's not what he calls her. He doesn't pat her hand like that, either, like a reassuring father. So there's no reason to be jealous, and his brother's mind doesn't seem to be going when he's awake, so really there's no point thinking about it. Torgrim certainly never needed reassuring from their own father, and he doesn't need it now.

One thing he did get from their parents, though—he knows he learned Atli's name first, too. Even his brother's kids can't say that. So there's no one on earth Torgrim needs to be jealous of. Even when they're not in bed, there's no space between them for anyone else to fit.


End file.
